Guest Review - Local Public Eatery - The Press Burger

Place:  Local Public Eatery.

Where: 171 East Liberty Street, Unit 100. Liberty Village, Toronto

Type: Chain

Web Site: localpubliceatery.com

Ambience:  Sort-of modern industrial.

Burger:  The Press Burger with Cheese.

Type of Cheese: Cheddar.

Pricing:  Burger and fries for $14.50, which isn't bad for Liberty Village.

THE PLACE

Like the inside of an old factory or warehouse.  Exposed ceiling, brick, wood and leather.  Classic Rock radio in the background, not too loud.  Attractive young wait staff in jeans & t-shirt uniforms.

 THE BURGER

A handmade patty on a bun baked in-house, topped with three-year old cheddar.  Lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle garnish.  Mustard and miso mayo condiments.  Served with fries.

Tasty burger.  The patty was firm and juicy, well done (no pink) with just a smidge of char at the edge.  The bun was very nice, not to much bread, and perfectly sized for the patty.  All the garnish was fresh and crisp.  The best part was the cheese, a thick slice of cheddar with just a little of the sharp tang you get from aging,

Perhaps the best thing about the burger was the balance of everything.  A near perfect ratio of bun-meat-cheese-garnish was achieved.  And the bun held everything together so that even the last bite was a complete burger experience.

The rest... prefab fries and store-bought ketchup were, you know, fine.  Nicely presented in a little tin bucket and side ketchup salver.  Whatever.

All in all, liked it, would have again.  This burger is not the taste-explosion experience that some places offer, but it's a good, well-made burger at a reasonable (for the neighbourhood) price.

FOLLOW UP

Went back for the first time today, ordered the same burger.  This one completely fell apart on me.  Grease all over my fingers, couldn't take a proper bite without dripping all over myself or the table.  Tried three or four bites, finally gave up and was going to ask for some cutlery (I know, cutlery with a burger, but there was no other way) and the staff had decided to hold a 'meeting' and was nowhere to be found.  A meeting at 12:30 on a weekday in the middle of a business area.  Loads of people at tables and at the bar, and all the staff... gone.

Couldn't have had two more different experiences.